Post navigation

Hasbro’s third quarter results were released today. My Little Pony sales continued to increase, leading their girls category to 17% growth for the quarter. However, declines in their boys and preschool categories produced a small net decline for the quarter.

In addition to strong merchandise sales, the Hub’s position continues to improve. The most recent quarter saw Hub’s highest ratings ever, an increase of 62% compared to the same time last year that places them among the fastest growing networks. Global TV distribution revenues, which we know from past reports come primarily from a few franchises such as Transformers, My Little Pony, and Pound Puppies, are up substantially and offset low movie revenues. ■

Looking for mainstream media perspective on Bronycon beyond the widely reprinted AP article? There was a wave of additional writeups in the last 24 hours. Bitch Media has a solid Faust interview that gets into her current thoughts on the show and fandom. There are also some relatively standard fandom introduction pieces in Slate and Jezebel. See a writeup we missed? Send it in!

Collector’s Weekly is up with a feature article on the pony fandom, My Little Pony Smackdown: Girls vs. Bronies. While the title may be sensationalistic, this is a well-researched article that does a great job highlighting the history of the show and presenting perspectives from several long-term fans. Those who follow merchandise in particular should appreciate the detailed look at prior generations of the toy line.

In another news appearance today, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a nice feature with interviews of local fans, Bronycon representatives, and two professors studying the phenomenon. One step closer to ponies appearing in every media outlet!

According to a bit of news released tonight by Pitchfork, celebrity and noted party animal Andrew W.K. will be appearing at the upcoming pony convention Canterlot Gardens. He apparently has taken a shine to Pinkie Pie and her love of parties, and his talk will be titled, “In the Flesh: What Would Pinkie Pie Do?” We can only speculate which celebrity will be next.

Wired, the magazine that made waves with its feature article on pony fans last June, is back with a new article about the fandom, In Defense of Bronies. Posted in its Geekmom section, the article explores several different perspectives on the fandom via a discussion between several contributors to the site. It also presents brief interviews with a number of community members and discusses various gender issues related to the fandom before ultimately rendering a positive verdict.

Wishing you could check out the My Little Pony Project in LA? Well, right now WeLoveFine is livestreaming the opening night here! Lots of interesting characters wandering by the camera, and some intriguing exhibits on display!

The second region 1 DVD release from Shout! Factory has been announced. Titled “Royal Pony Wedding,” it will have the episodes The Best Night Ever, Sweet and Elite, and Hearts and Hooves Day in addition to the season two finale. With 120 minutes of running time, up from 110 on The Friendship Express, perhaps there will be some bonus features as well. The DVD is slated to release on August 7th, has a suggested retail price of $14.97, and is currently available for preorder on Amazon. Have some thoughts on the episode selection? Head on over to the forums! ■

After a long time in the pipeline, an early demo of the side-scrolling adventure Fiends from Dream Valley has been released! The demo allows you to explore the Canterlot palace grounds as Twilight Sparkle and then assemble your team in the Everfree Forest. Check below the cut for some first impressions.

The pony fan community raised $10,788 to help alleviate famine the the Horn of Africa following a 24-hour marathon charity fundraiser, “Elements of Charity: Art for Africa” hosted on the the site Ponyslivenow. The drive was in support of the “Inked! Art for Africa” charity Scootaloo voice actress Maddy Peters. The marathon charity drive featured hourly interviews of community members, including this site’s own kefkafloyd, and streaming gameplay from the massively multiplayer game Mount & Blade.

All of Hasbro’s promotional efforts for the season finale look to have paid off! Nearly half a million people tuned in live to watch the finale, according to Nielsen estimates. The first half of the finale set Hub ratings records among children 2-11, children 6-11, and households. It also placed second all-time among persons 2+. The second half of the finale trailed only the first half among children 6-11 and households, and was the third highest rated show in network history among children 2-11. The success of the finale paced Hub to its second best Saturday ever.

Other shows that appear to be performing strongly are The Aquabats! Super Show!, which came in second for the day with a series high of more than 300,000 viewers, Transformers: Prime, and Dan Vs.■